DESCRIPTION: Fine antique small-scale nautical chart (Sheet 1 of 3) of southern Torres Strait, the body of water separating the continent of Australia (Nouvelle Hollande) from New Guinea. First published in 1860 with last corrections made in 1875.
One of 4 charts of the Torres Strait area produced by the Depot de la Marine, this being the first detail sheet encompassing the Cape York Peninsula, York Island "Ile du Prince de Galles", Eborac Island, and numerous other cays and islands in the Torres Strait Archipelago.The Depot de la Marine was established in 1720 under the French Ministry of the Navy to collect, preserve, and publish nautical charts, sailing directions, and maritime intelligence for the French naval service. Its purpose was both archival and practical: to centralize geographic knowledge gathered from voyages, surveys, and colonial administration, and to convert that information into standardized charts for navigation. Over the eighteenth century the Depot became the principal hydrographic authority of France, issuing engraved sea charts that incorporated data from naval expeditions, colonial outposts, and scientific voyages.
Following the French Revolution, the institution was reorganized and its chart production expanded, particularly during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries as global maritime competition intensified. The Depot de la Marine supervised official surveys, revised earlier charts, and maintained copperplates for continued reissue as coastal knowledge improved. In 1886 it was formally reorganized as the Service hydrographique de la Marine, the predecessor of today’s French hydrographic office. Charts bearing the Depot imprint remain important records of French naval activity, colonial expansion, and the technical development of European hydrography.
PUBLICATION DATE: 1875
GEOGRAPHIC AREA: Australia
BODY OF WATER: Torres Strait
CONDITION: Good.
 Clean. Minor edge tears. Central vertical fold.
COLORING: None
ENGRAVER: Jacobs and Chassant
SIZE: 24
" x
36 "
ITEM PHYSICAL LOCATION: 59
PRICE: $600
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